Capital Weather Gang: August 1, 2010 - August 7, 2010

It seems like we've waited the whole summer for a weekend like this. At last, we'll put together two days without rain, extreme heat, or oppressive humidity. So we can all go about our weekend activities free of weather worries like heat stroke or thunderstorm induced power outages. While this break from the heat is well-timed, that's all it is - a break. Next week we steam right back up.

Heat wave (3 days in a row 90+) number five of the year is in the books here in D.C., and while we may see it end tomorrow, another is right behind it. That aside, it's a much friendlier heat than yesterday and we aren't dealing with any nasty weather this afternoon. Dew points have fallen throughout the day and by later this evening I'd go as far as to say things will be quite pleasant. If you're looking for an outdoor spot for dinner, it might still be worth skipping the Alexandria area.

NASA's MODIS satellite sensor, which has a history of providing breathtaking shots of our planet, was at it again yesterday. A large -- approximately 97-square-mile -- chunk of ice broke away from the Petermann Glacier in northern Greenland. This new ice island (as seen in the image above just to the right of center) is the largest iceberg formed in the Arctic since 1962, according to a University of Delaware press release. It's about 40-percent larger than the District of Columbia.

AccuWeather.com's Joe Bastardi is out with his initial forecast for the upcoming winter, and the news is good for people in the D.C. area hoping for an end to the extreme and record-breaking conditions of this past winter and the ongoing summer.

Enjoy a rain-free and less humid couple of days -- courtesy of the cold front that brought yesterday's damaging storms -- before the "Dog Days" seep back into our region starting Sunday. As with many cold fronts this summer, we won't see a dramatic drop in temperatueres with highs still in the upper 80s to low 90s through the weekend. By Sunday, a small chance of thundershowers coincides with the return of increasing mugginess. Looking ahead to next week? Get ready to bake and sweat again.

An updated hurricane season forecast issued by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration today continues to call for a very active season, and possibly one of the more active ones on record. NOAA forecasters expect a 90% chance of an above-normal season, with a 70% chance of 14-20 named storms in total (including the three so far), 8-12 of which are predicted to be hurricanes and 4-6 of these major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher).

* Hot & humid with chance of strong storms: Full Forecast * Capital Weather Gang (CWG) continues to build its presence on Twitter and we now have almost 6,000 followers on our main feed @capitalweather . To date, we've used this feed for a mix of fun/witty weather banter, storm...

Just get through today somehow and the weekend will be your reward. Temperatures are likely to outdo yesterday and humidity hangs a steam bath on the area. And a line of strong to severe thunderstorms may come just in time for afternoon rush...ugh. Conditions improve markedly Friday and get downright nice on Saturday and Sunday. Heat and humidity won't start to sneak back until Monday.

Well, we still ended up seeing a fair amount of clouds today -- they seem to be enjoying their stay. But, it did not keep most places from rising above 90 this afternoon. This is now the 45th day at or above 90 at National this year. Add in dew points as high as the mid-70s and you've got quite an unpleasant day outside. There may be some relief in the form of a cooling shower or storm, but we're not losing the heat right away.

Bob Ryan's decision to move from Channel 4 (WRC-TV) to Channel 7 (WJLA-TV), where he debuted on May 17, might seem like a bombshell. After all, Ryan had been at WRC for a full three decades. But his arrival in D.C. back in 1980 was a major event of its own, with implications for both local and national weathercasting.

I remember thinking last summer -- during a comfortably warm, but not-too-hot-and-humid June and July -- what if every Washington summer was as nice as that one had been? And then came August. There's a reason August in D.C. has a bad rep. Even in overall cooler-than-average summers like last year's, August still seems to bring the steam (Aug. 2009 finished 2.4 degrees above normal). Despite the cooler first few days of this August, the next few days bring back typical August heat and humidity.

After a summer full of high heat, we've had some trouble getting back into it recently. Clouds have stuck around the area again today and they've helped hold temperatures back in the mid-80s most spots. A few light sprinkles and showers have also been noted from time to time. The heat may be delayed, but as the next few days progress we should see it won't be denied.

As she did for winter 2010, this summer Mother Nature has truly outdone herself, this time by brewing up a miserable combination of heat and humidity that has enveloped not only the northeastern U.S., but much of the Northern Hemisphere as well. As Ian Livingston reported on Saturday, July was the warmest single calendar month of all time in Washington (tied with July 1993). The warmest day in the city was July 7th, when the temperature soared to 102 degrees Fahrenheit at Reagan National Airport. The day before, the temperature rose to a sweltering 105 F at Baltimore-Washington International Airport.

Yesterday's high of only 83 at National was five degree for it to be "cool" for a second straight day. But the climatology calendar reminds us that we still have the second hottest month of the summer yet to go, so here we go. Heat and humidity should return in force the next few days and remind us of the "dark side" of summer. We must once again brave highs in the 90s, high humidity, and p.m .thunderstorm threats.

Tropical depression four (TD4) formed over the tropical Atlantic near 41W earlier this morning, just as the disturbance developed a closed low-level circulation. No where near land, TD4 is roughly 2600 miles southeast of the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Maximum winds in TD4 are estimated at 35 mph and its movement is toward the west-northwest at 16 mph.

Heating back up for the rest of the week * New hail record in South Dakota | Rediscovering a classic D.C. photo * * Outside now? Radar, lightning, temps & more: Weather Wall * We've seen another rare (for this year) "cool" and quite cloudy day across the area. Temperatures...

This is a story of discovery and rediscovery of a classic Washington weather photo. The above photo was published on December 6, 1927 in The Washington Post and shows a young boy posing confidently next to a massive snowdrift on H Street, with his family standing in the background. The photo was taken a day or two after "The Great Blizzard" of February 13, 1899.

A record setting hailstone was ultimately discovered in Vivian, measuring 8.0 inches in diameter, 18.625 inches in circumference, and weighing in at an amazing 1.9375 pounds!! This hailstone broke the previous United States hail size record for diameter (7.0 inches - 22 June 2003 in Aurora, NE) and weight (1.67 pounds - 3 September 1970 in Coffeyvile, KS).

Yesterday's overcast afternoon capped temperatures in the low 80s, the coolest conditions in a month. If only the first day of August was a harbinger of the weather to come. But no, a warming trend begins today and another serving of sultry air grips the area Tuesday through Thursday. As the mercury climbs, we'll have to keep an eye to the sky for the next several afternoons and evenings as the steamy air may support development of thunderstorms.

We begin a slightly unsettled period today as a disturbance slides by. Behind it, no high pressure moves in, so we'll continue to see at least small chances for rain daily through midweek. After being held in check today to the tune of the lower 80s, our daily highs will ramp back up slowly. By Wednesday, we'll have highs returning to the mid-90s along with uncomfortable humidity levels.